United We Stand
by NaluWahine
Summary: Roslin & Adama uneasily reunite against human, Cylon and biological enemies. Takes place duringafter Home and Pegasus. For Amanda Green and Moggie who encouraged me to write again.
1. Chapter 1

Ever since he arrived, Laura Roslin was waiting for him to lash out at her. She didn't think he would do her physical harm but she wasn't absolutely sure. When she saw him embrace his son and tenderly approach LT Thrace that she realized it must have seemed to him she turned his two children against him. No matter Apollo chose what to do on his own. No matter she asked Thrace to do the mission because she was the only one who could. To him she must have been targeting him and his family.

When he told her it was good to see her, she thought he meant the hunter had found his prey. Despite her reservations, she had to admit it was good to see him too: alive and capable of handling a weapon. If Tigh remained in charge of the military she had no hope for their future. That, she told herself, was why she had such a strong urge to hug him which she just barely kept under control.

She fully expected him to take her back into custody. She feared more blood would be shed over it. On the other hand, she would not go quietly when there was so much at stake and they were so close to the prize. When he returned her book of scripture to her and told her they better go find the tomb, relief and joy washed over her.

To avoid crying tears of happiness, she gazed around at the makeshift tents around them. Everyone, she noted, seemed strangely happy given the extreme danger they were in and the rough conditions they were enduring. Perhaps it was the company. Almost all of them were paired off. Roughing it with someone you cared about made it bearable. The danger seemed to clarify their feelings. They were free to act on them because it was likely they would all die soon.

No longer able to control her need to hold him, she crawled toward him, kissed him on the cheek and curled into his side. "Thank you," she murmured as she crossed her arm over his chest and nestled her head on his shoulder.

Adama was completely taken aback but he didn't show it. After several seconds of staring blankly ahead, he came to his senses, wrapped his arms around her and said, "That alone was worth the hunt."

Roslin's feminine, almost girlish, giggle caught the ear of the younger Adama and drew his attention away from Starbuck for a moment. Stunned, he wondered if she'd been drugged as he watched her snuggle against his old man. Starbuck followed his line of sight and grinned as her commander pulled a blanket over himself and his arch enemy, the President of the Colonies.

"Guess you can get away with anything if you've got really great legs," she joked. Apollo swatted her on the arm and she feigned injury. "Ohhhh…father's moving in on your girlfriend, is he?" she taunted.

"She's not my girlfriend…she's my…hope," he realized aloud. Apollo tore his eyes away when the camp went dark and returned his attention to his own tent mate.

Adama woke before Roslin in the morning. The cover they had wasn't enough to keep them completely warm and they had latched onto each other to make up for it. All this time together and he still didn't know what to make of her. She was intelligent and strong and he loved to look at her but…she nearly destroyed him and the fleet for this wild religious goose chase. Yet, just holding her made him feel more alive than he had since the birth of his sons.

Laura stirred in his arms and smiled up at him when she woke.

"I don't suppose you're used to sleeping in the woods, Madam President. Are you OK?"

"Actually, I haven't slept that soundly since I left Caprica, maybe even before that," she mused. She was as surprised as he was. She liked the outdoors but wasn't a big camper. Her pride kept her from acknowledging what she knew subconsciously. She slept soundly because this formidable man held her close and that was all she needed. To her conscious mind, that was too needy to suit the strong character she worked so hard to maintain.

"Me too, but I love sleeping in the woods." Adama was glad he'd decided to forgive her and even agreed to help her with her quest. Maybe if he backed her up on her search, when it proved futile she would give up all of the religious crap and they could trust each other again. He did not admit to himself he was hoping for more than trust and more than an embrace.

When everything she predicted came to pass, Adama was shocked but found part of him knew she was right all along. At his core, he hoped if her gift was real it would save her from the cancer. Of all the horrible log passages he read after his recovery, that one hit him the hardest. Though he couldn't stop thinking about it, he couldn't bring himself to ask her about it. He sensed she wasn't ready to talk about it. He wasn't sure he was either.

The triumphant group halted their excited chatter when they came upon the shredded remains of the first transport. It was the one that carried the "fugitives" here and now it was laid to waste by Cylons. Adama led the group back double-time to the transport he brought. Though two of the original travelers would stay buried on Kobol, it was going to take some creativity to get everyone left onboard the small shuttle…if the Cylons hadn't already found it.

Luckily, it was still in one piece when they got to it. Adama figured the Cylons were following the first group's track up the mountain as the humans were coming back down. They'd better scramble. After a cursory check for planted explosives, Adama whispered instructions to the group to load.

"It's going to be tight so we're going to have to lap sit and strap to the floor. If we leave all the gear here we should have enough lift. Helo, you're responsible for the Cylon, Chief, you take Cally, Apollo, you've got Starbuck. Billy, you and Dr. Baltar will strap to the deck and I'll take the President."

It sounded uncomfortable but Billy nodded his ascent. He was just happy to be getting out of here and to have someone who knew what he was doing giving him orders.

On the other hand, Gaius wasn't willing to be uncomfortable, nor follow orders, nor give up the opportunity to get next to the President. "As the Vice President, I think I should have a seat and the President should sit on my lap," he whined.

Adama looked at Baltar with disgust but didn't have time for squabbling or to pick him up if he flattened him with a punch. "Fine, just get in," Adama commanded from gritted teeth.

"Dr. Baltar, I don't think it's wise for you and I to share a seat. If we get hit by flak, that leaves no one to clearly ascend to the Presidency," Roslin pointed out as the rest boarded. She knew this was the one carrot that would get him to give up a seat.

"Quite right, Madam President," he swallowed, "I hadn't thought of the flak."

"Since the skin on the underbelly is armored, you'll be safer strapped to the deck," she pointed out.

"Yes, Madam President. I'll do what's best for the Colonies, of course."

Starbuck whispered into Apollo's ear, "What the hell is she talking about?" referring to the lack of armor on this craft.

"Politics," Apollo replied with a grin as he sat down and smugly slapped his thigh for Starbuck to sit down.

Once everyone else was seated, Adama gave his hand to the President to help her aboard. He sat down and she settled into his lap without hesitation. Adama quickly strapped them in and gave the order to go. Shortly after they cleared the tree line, they started taking fire and the pilot punched it to get them out of range as fast as possible.

Until they were out of range, he had to jink to evade fire.

A round punctured the airframe and zipped by the President's head and out through the top of the craft. She didn't scream. She just pressed herself tighter against Adama and closed her eyes.

"Chief, we've got to get some speed patch across those before we make altitude," Adama ordered.

The Chief was already out of his harness and he and Cally were moving to the MX kit. "Got it, Sir!" he replied.

Adama drew his hand up to cradle the back of the President's head. She was so brave. Gods he loved her. "Let Tigh know we'll have to jump as soon as we're in," he ordered the engineer. "I'm sure those bastards are tracking us."

As they approached Galactica, Billy spoke from where he sat with his knees drawn to his chest on the deck. "Madam President, when we land everyone will be waiting. I need to know what you and Commander Adama want them to think."

Laura Roslin looked into Adama's eyes for an answer. She had fulfilled her mission. She'd be willing to step down and hand things over to Baltar if it was the only way to keep peace. Despite their apparent truce, she wasn't sure if the Commander would find it too detrimental to his ability to lead if he supported her as President after she betrayed him.

"What do we want them to think, Commander?" she asked, ceding control to him now that he'd helped her do what she had to do.

"Billy, we want them to know that the President and I are now more closely aligned than ever. We want them to know that now we have the knowledge to take them to Earth." Though he addressed Billy, he never took his gaze from the woman he was holding. She beamed at him with unmitigated adoration.

Easily embarrassed, Billy coughed and looked down at his hands. "OK, then. The message is that there's no daylight between you." Hoping they weren't gazing at each other, he looked back up to convey his instructions. "We need to show everyone, especially the civilians of the fleet, that you completely support the President and that the President isn't threatened by you or the military. I think the best way to do that is visually. There will be a lot of photos. Your body language will determine what people make of the relationship."

"I appreciate your effort to 'spin' this, but I'm an officer, not a politician. You want to give that to me in a simple order?" Adama said with some weariness.

"Sir, I recommend you and the President literally don't let any daylight come between you for the first half dozen or so public appearances. You should always be side by side, or she should have your arm, or if you're seated, you should be right next to each other with your forearms in contact if possible. Whenever you can, you should put your hand on the small of her back or even around her waist. You should whisper to each other a lot too, even if you have nothing to say. Nothing says solidarity like a shared secret."

Adama looked at Roslin to see if she was buying this. It sounded like a lot of pretense just to get people to forget…he locked her up and…she divided the fleet. Then he realized he better just do what Billy said. Following his own instincts got them into this mess. "Madam President, can you put up with me pawing you and whispering in your ear for the sake of the fleet?"

"Well if you're willing to endure that much proximity, I suppose I can be big about it," she drawled.

Billy smiled and sighed with relief. He never thought he could get these two who had nearly killed each other _and_ half the fleet in the process, to agree to feign closeness. Maybe he was a better politician than he thought!

When they landed, everyone else got off first. Cheers greeted every passenger as they disembarked except Sharon. Gasps gave way to jeers and threatening shouts. If she weren't clearly shackled and en route to the brig, things probably would have erupted in violence. A wave of dread came over the crowd as Sharon was lead away and the Commander failed to appear. Had she finally killed him?

Relief spread when he finally appeared in the doorway. He waved then held his hands up to silence the cheers and applause. "Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the Colonies has returned to us," he announced with authority as he stretched his hand out to help her from the cabin.

President Roslin didn't show any hesitation though she was completely unsure how she would be received aboard Galactica. She took his hand and, keeping Billy's instruction in mind, held on to it as they stood at the top of the stairs. The crowd applauded but wasn't as welcoming as they were to Adama. Picking up on this, Adama laced his fingers through hers to let her know he would continue to hold her hand as they made their way down the stairs and through the crowd.

By the time they were off the staircase, the crowd had fallen silent but watchful. They seemed to be waiting for an explanation or speech. Roslin surveyed them and Adama halted at her side. She made use of Billy's trick to stall for time. As she leaned in to whisper in Adama's ear that she didn't know what to say, he turned his head so he could hear her. To the crowd, it looked like she was kissing him on the cheek. The hanger exploded in applause, whistles and shouts of approval.

Both of them were surprised by the sudden excitement of the crowd. Neither realized what just happened but they smiled and waved and he put his hand on her back to lead her through the crowd as fast as possible. He took her back to his quarters so she could clean up after the jump while she waited for the maintenance crew to turn the shuttle for a return to Colonial One.

In his Q, he apologized for not having anything "Presidential" for her to change into but said he could get her a set of PT gear.

"Do you think there's a spare flightsuit I could use?" she asked to his surprise.

Not wanting to pick a fight, he didn't vocalize his surprise that she would wear a military uniform, even in a pinch. "Yes, I think I can get you one," was all he said as he handed her a towel.

"Thank you," she said as she took it. "I can't wait to get a shower, even if it's not a long, hot one," she remarked as she walked away from him toward his bathroom. He tried not to picture the obvious but couldn't keep his eyes from following her to the door. When she turned to close it, she caught him watching her. He cleared his throat and murmured, "I'll get you that flightsuit," to hide his interest.

Oblivious to what she just did to her host, Laura Roslin peeled off the clothes she wore for the last two days and turned on the shower. She felt guilty about getting in before him but she was grateful he offered. At first she felt awkward about using his soap and shampoo but the familiar scents, his scents, made her feel good and the warm water relaxed her.

She emerged from his bathroom wrapped in a towel with her wet hair combed back. Adama just returned with the flightsuit. Seeing her with her hair wet made him want to withhold the flightsuit. To keep himself in check, he crossed to her and handed her the uniform without lingering.

"I think this will fit, Madam President. I'll be in the shower so you'll have the room for privacy," he mumbled while avoiding eye contact.

"Thank you," she said to his back as he hurried into the bathroom. On some level she was disappointed that he didn't show any spark of interest in her even though she was practically naked. She dismissed all of her ideas about any sort of closeness with him and forced herself to focus on cold reality. She would be dead in a few weeks. There was no sense wasting time on something that couldn't happen. Determined not to fall into a well of self pity, she took notice of one of the artifacts in his library as a means of distraction.

It was an ancient tool from Gemini. She studied the attached plaque inscribed with a lengthy history of the tool and the mythology associated with it. From there, a photo album on the third shelf caught her eye. Her sense of propriety was trumped by her lack of time left to live. After setting the flightsuit down on the couch, she pulled the album down and opened it with the intention of apologizing later if it upset Adama.

Pictures of Adama's family and military exploits fascinated her. She poured over them with no regard for the loss of time. When the door opened behind her, she closed the album and quickly returned it to the shelf. Adama was surprised and somewhat distressed that she was not dressed.

"It doesn't fit?"

"Actually, I haven't tried…"Roslin's words trailed off as she turned to face him. Two round scars and lines from incisions on his bare chest stole her attention. It reminded her how close he'd recently come to dying. Silently, she moved to him and instinctively reached out to touch the scars.

The incident still haunted Adama but he didn't flinch when she gently laid her hand on his wounds. After tracing the scars with her fingers and contemplating what he went through, she looked into his eyes with great pain. Only then did she realize her intrusion but she did not back away.

His jaw was clinched when she first stared at his wounds but when she touched him he felt unexpected relief at sharing the pain. She wasn't just curious; she wanted to feel what he felt. He'd been very close to where she was going. In a strange way, the specter of death made them kindred.

Adama's door buzzed and he reluctantly withdrew from her to open the hatch.


	2. Chapter 2

Billy was surprised to be greeted by Commander Adama in a towel. "Sorry to bother you, Sir. I take it the President isn't still here."

"I'm here, Billy," she said as she appeared behind Adama.

Adama looked over his shoulder at his truly fearless leader, then stepped aside to let Billy in.

Once the hatch was closed, a shocked Billy looked from one of the most powerful people left in existence to the other; both clad in towels. "Madam President, when I said no daylight between you, I didn't mean you had to shower together."

Adama smirked at the boy's complete lack of situational awareness.

Roslin decided to toy with him. "Well, in that case, I'm sorry I intruded on your shower, Commander. On the up side, we did save water."

Billy turned a pleasing shade of reddish pink.

"Why don't you come back for the President in twenty minutes," Commander Adama suggested to be rid of the boy.

"Um, OK, Commander. Sorry for the confusion," he said as he fairly tripped over himself getting out of the hatch as fast as he could manage.

Adama turned to Roslin who was nearly doubled over in laughter. "You really enjoy doing that to him, don't you?" he said before joining her in irrepressible laughter.

"Yes! I know it's terrible, but I can't help it. He's so naïve. It really endears him to me."

He crossed to her, picking up the flight suit along the way. His steps were slow. Glee slipped from the room as he purposely penetrated her personal space. She flashed back to the intense anguish they were sharing before they were interrupted.

Adama pressed the flight suit into her hands without saying anything, holding her stare with his own. Her breathing was shallow. He kept still in the hope she would move her hands to his chest again. The President sensed they were on the precipice of abandon. No matter how much she wanted to lose herself with him, she still couldn't bring herself to tell him how little time she had. Unless he knew, it wouldn't be fair to draw him in.

"I'll go put this on," she whispered in defeat as she broke the spell by looking down at the bundle between them.

As she went in to the bathroom, Adama decided she was interested but not as interested as he was. He sensed something else too, a sadness. Once again, he focused on the maddeningly incurable cancer. His whole life he triumphed in life and death situations. All military leaders who survive to old age have cheated death for themselves and legions of their people. Now he was frustrated to near insanity because he could not find a survival solution for one woman.

He put on a fresh uniform, thinking he would escort her to her shuttle. As he was tying his shoes, she emerged in the flight suit. Looking up at her in the form-hugging uniform made him stop what he was doing and catch his breath.

Feeling like she was in a costume, and a little silly, she smiled when he looked at her with what she took to be polite restraint to not tell her how goofy she looked. She imagined when he quickly looked back down to finish tying his shoe he was just trying to keep from laughing at her.

They heard Billy at the door again and she shored herself up to appear in public in this thing. Adama stole another look at her before letting him in.

"Thank you for the clothes and…everything, Commander," the President said as a means of parting. Though she decided to take the high road, she thought it best not to tempt herself with any more time with Commander Adama than necessary. "Billy can see me back to the shuttle."

Adama wouldn't give up so easily, especially when she looked so alluring. "Billy, don't you think people will get the wrong impression if I don't see the President back to her shuttle? They might think we are already fighting."

"It could be a problem, Ma'am," Billy admitted.

Roslin didn't care as much about public opinion as she did about maintaining peace with the Commander, so she acquiesced. "Thank you again, Commander," she said as she exited the hatch after Billy and in front of Adama. Once the Commander was at her side, he proffered his arm as Billy recommended on their return. The President glanced at Adama and slid her hand into the crook of his arm against her better judgment. As they made their way to the shuttle, crew members came to attention against the walls to make way and show respect…more for their newly recovered Commander than for her, Roslin imagined.

Adama acknowledged them with head nods as they passed. He must have sensed the same suspicion toward the President because he protectively put his right hand over the one she had clasped on his left arm and drew her nearer to him by sliding her hand closer around his arm.

A small crowd waited at the cordon around her shuttle. It was press mixed with off duty crew curious to see how things were playing out in this tenuous reunification. Everyone knew the President and the Commander didn't see eye to eye before the coup against the President and mutiny against the Commander. Most people didn't believe their reconciliation would last long. If it unraveled here, these people wanted to be present to defend their respective champions.

Adama escorted her to the top of the flight stairs where Billy had set up a microphone. She withdrew her hand from Adama's arm and approached it. Billy caught Adama's eye and urged him with a nod to close the space between them as the President addressed the crowd.

"I know things have been bleak for the last few weeks," she began. The Commander quietly moved up behind her. She sensed his proximity and it surprisingly relaxed her. "But I want to assure you, Commander Adama and I now share one, overarching agenda for the fleet: to find Earth. We may still disagree on minor matters, but we are committed to working through those issues together toward the common goal."

Unsure if the crowd believed his CINC's promise, he made an unprecedented move. Adama stepped so close to her that she could feel him behind her. When he actually slid his left hand around her waist she froze. Generally, it was completely against protocol for public leaders to touch like this. After the initial shock, she realized he was trying to graphically back up her statement.

"There will be a press conference tomorrow evening where I will field questions about the way ahead. Thank you," she said with a smile and nod to the crowd. She turned and smiled at the Commander and it dawned on her that how they parted this first time would be very important. He shared her thought. The Commander saluted her which she automatically returned. Then he offered his hand intending to give an obviously hearty shake. She took his hand but escalated by leaning forward and kissing him on the cheek mid-handshake. In a moment of uncharacteristic weakness, Adama wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her to him in a politically taboo embrace. The crowd loved it, applauding and whistling their approval.

Unable to resist, she returned the embrace. Though the crowd was reassured, the President lost faith in her ability to keep from getting so close to this man that her impending death would be traumatic for him. After a few self-indulgent moments of leaning on him, she pulled back. They shared an intimate smile at the barriers they just broke. She turned back to the crowd, waved and boarded the shuttle. If she would have stayed a second longer, she was afraid she would ask him to take her back to his quarters.


	3. Chapter 3

Usually a workaholic, Commander Adama turned his duties over to the XO this evening. In the few days since they'd been back, his concern over the President's health increased. Though she seemed comfortable with their necessary public closeness, she seemed anxious whenever he got too close to her in private. He likened it to a wounded animal not wanting anyone to touch it. Or, maybe he was wrong before. She wasn't interested in him at all.

Until tonight, he'd been content to lose himself in work, give her some space and research every possible cure for cancer that had ever been conceived. Tonight, she returned his book. Military commanders were trained to look for signs of suicidal intent. Giving away and returning precious things was one of them. He didn't think she intended to kill herself, but she seemed to be preparing for death. If he couldn't miraculously offer her some hope soon, he'd have to ask the question he dreaded; how long did she…how long did they have?

On _Colonial One_, Laura Roslin faced the fact that she was in for another rough night. As she eyed her bed with disdain, she admitted to herself the last time she slept through the night was in the woods with the Commander. If she'd known him years ago, would she have gone to the doctors for tests like she should have? It seemed ironic that when she didn't have much to live for, she could have saved herself. Now that she had so much to live for, she could not do a thing to save herself.

As she drew closer to the Commander, it became painful to withhold her agony from him. Despite her intent to keep away from him, they ended up spending more time together than ever out of necessity. There were a lot of messes to clean up in the wake of Tigh's rule and the scattering of the fleet. They were also overseeing the work of their planners and logisticians who were engineering a way to get the fleet to Earth now that the President and the Commander delivered some starting points.

Then Admiral Cain appeared.

The President wouldn't admit it, but she was disappointed that the Admiral outranked her Commander for more reasons than just having "been through a lot" with him. She trusted him to see the fleet through to Earth after she died. The Admiral's agenda seemed bent on destruction of the Cylons. Roslin still felt that strategy would mean the death of the fleet before the death of the Cylons.

The more she learned about the Admiral, the more she liked Commander Adama by comparison. It seemed like a century ago that she thought he might be a Cylon. Now, her misgivings about Admiral Cain and the Commander's frustration with the Admiral's tactics drew the President and the Commander very close together.

Laura didn't have time to win the Admiral over the way she'd won Adama's respect and trust. Her only hope was to work with the Commander to get around her. Though Commander Adama assured her he would make some headway with the Admiral once she eventually learned to trust him, the President sensed there would instead be a violent confrontation. If that happened, she hoped the majority of the fleet, maybe even some of Cain's captains, would follow Adama.

One late night in her chambers, she recorded a message to both fleets beseeching them to follow Commander Adama to Earth should they have to choose between him and Admiral Cain. She took Billy into her confidence, asking him to disperse the message, if it came to that, after her death.

She also confided in Apollo with the same instructions as a fail safe. Unlike his father, Apollo summoned the courage to ask her about her most private issue. For a few moments, she debated whether to tell him. Their unique bond, however, made her answer him truthfully. She only had weeks to live, at best.

Apollo was visibly shaken but he managed to keep from crying, just barely. Instead, he embraced her and she let him hold her for a few minutes. He left the room in silence because he could not speak. Once he was alone, in the dark, he shed his tears for lost hope into his pillow.

These things left the President exhausted. Why, then, she wondered, couldn't she sleep? As she turned down the sheets on her bed, the answer came unbidden. Ever since that night in the woods, the longing for him to hold her through the night overcame any comfort she took in lying down. Truthfully, she wanted more than to be held but didn't have any hope of even that happening in the short time she had left.

When Admiral Cain summoned Commander Adama at an ungodly hour, he assumed it had to do with the courts martial at hand. Maybe she was finally going to at least seek his counsel if not have him attend. He dressed as quickly as possible and reported as ordered. Not one to mince words, as soon as the door closed behind him, the Admiral asked him point blank, "Are you having sex with the President?"

Adama was shocked into silence. He recovered enough to maintain his cool outwardly but his blood boiled. "Admiral, I don't see…"

"So, it's true."

"No! I am not sleeping with the President!" he blurted angrily. "I don't know who told you that, or why you care for that matter, but it's a lie."

"Alright. I believe you. No need to be so sensitive about it…unless," she eyed him like a lioness considering potential prey.

Adama stiffened under her scrutiny.

"You're not…holy clusterfrak, Bill…I don't mean to insult you, but you're not in love with her, are you?"

Obviously, the Admiral would regard him as a fool if he answered affirmatively. He wasn't sure if she held love in general in contempt or specifically President Roslin. "I fail to see the point of this," he growled.

Helena Cain's eyes narrowed. "Just answer the question, Commander. Do you love Laura Roslin?"

If ever he wished he weren't in the military, it was now. He could not lie to a superior officer without breaking his officer's oath and the code of conduct. He would not be the Lancelot in Caprica's realm.

"Yes," he hissed. He was admitting it to himself as much as to her.

The Admiral closed her eyes at the news of how much this legendary commander had lost his way. "Does she say she's in love with you?"

"No."

"Does she know you're in love with her?"

"No."

Relieved, the Admiral opened her eyes. "Well, keep it that way. If she weren't terminal, I'd have to remove you from command. I'll allow you to retain command since you've at least used _some_ discretion, as long as you maintain it until she dies. I can't have you subject to undue influence from such a dangerous woman. In Zeus's name, Commander! You should have stayed away from her just because she's a politician, but this woman incited a mutiny."

Seething, Commander Adama forced himself to be a frozen fire. If he lashed out at her now, she'd take away what little power he had left to protect the fleet…and the President. If Tigh was right, she might even kill him on the spot.

"Do we have anything more specific than 'months' for when she'll die?" the Admiral asked as nonchalantly as if she asked for a weather report.

Unknowing and uncaring, the Admiral just twisted the knife that slowly tore through Adama's heart ever since he read the press report where the President admitted she was dying of cancer and only had months to live. He had to get out of this room before he put his hands to her throat. "I'll go find out," he spat out as he stormed from the room.

The next day, after their meeting with the planners and the loggies, Commander Adama asked the President if she would come back to his quarters to discuss another issue. She agreed, wondering what was bothering him. Though the captains and lieutenants had optimistic leads at the meeting, Adama's brow remained furrowed and he seemed distracted. News of the courts martial reached her so she concluded he might want her advice on what to do though she had no power in the military justice proceedings.

Adama handed her a glass of water as she settled on his now familiar couch. He couldn't bring himself to sit next to her given what he had to ask her. "Madam President, I'll understand if you won't tell me, but I've got to ask you something personal."

Her stomach knotted. They stared at each other for several eternal moments.

"How long do you have?" was all he could manage in a gruff whisper.

Laura Roslin looked down at the glass in her hand. She was thankful it wasn't shaking. Still, she could not look back up at him. "I…um…one or two weeks," she said quietly.

Adama said nothing at all. She expected at least some expression of regret or solace out of him. It hurt her that he was so callous as she laid herself bare. Anger steeled her to look up into his eyes.

Tears were streaming out of them.

"I wish I didn't love you so much," he choked out.

Now matching tears came from her eyes. "I don't regret loving you at all," she said as she smiled at him beneath her tears.

Her glass smashed on the deck as he pulled her up to him and kissed her with all the passion he'd held at bay for weeks. Laura Roslin kissed him back with equal heat. Now he knew everything. If he wanted her despite all this, she would not deny herself any longer. It struck her as funny that her dying wish was something rather indecent. She'd have her heaven now since she might not have it later.

Adama considered himself damned for other reasons. He defied the Admiral and now all bets were off. He would pay for this, but right now, he considered making love to her worth any price. Running his kisses down her neck and his hands down her back, he pulled her back toward his bed. Keeping his left hand on her waist, he lightly slipped the back of his right hand down her cheek, under her chin and down her neck. She held her breath when he laid his hand flat over the top buttons of her blouse. He looked into her eyes for permission and could see he had it.

When he brought his left hand up from her waist to the buttons, he let his open palm brush feather-light over her breast. She tilted her head back but it seemed to be in pleasure, not pain, so when he undid all of the buttons, he pushed the material away by gently smoothing his hands over the cups of her bra.

She kissed him again but he withdrew from her to pick her blouse up off the floor. Mystified, she watched as he undid the buttons on his jacket and crossed over to the chair she hung her coat on when she entered his room. Was he so anal retentive that he'd stop in the middle of sex to hang up clothes?

Sure enough, he took her blouse and coat over to his closet and hung them up. He hung up his own jacket, took off his shirt and hung that up too.

"What are you doing!" she asked incredulously.

"You're going to be here for a long time." He looked her in the eye as he crossed back over to her. "As long as it takes for me to give you every pleasure I can possibly think of."

President Roslin swallowed.

"Then," he said in a disarmingly sexy voice as he slid behind her and put his arms around her waist, "I'm going to look up some more. If we left your clothes on the floor for days, they'd be wrinkled beyond belief when I finally let you go." He pressed his lips to her ear. "I need your skirt," he whispered as he splayed one hand on her bare stomach, dipping a few fingers below her waistband. With his other hand, he undid the button and zipper in the back of her skirt.

Instead of pulling it down from the hem, he slowly slid both hands inside the waistband and down her thighs until it fell away. He moved around to face her then knelt to pick her skirt up. As he took it in his hands, he purposely kept close enough to her that she could feel his breath on her legs. When she ran her fingers into his hair, he knew he was having the desired knee-weakening impact.

She stepped out of the skirt and he rose to go hang it up but she caught him from behind and wrapped her arms around him. "Wait a minute. You might as well hang up your trousers at the same time," she said playfully. He smiled as she kissed his shoulder and undid his pants.

A man of his word, they made love longer and in more ways than either of them had before. On the first day, Billy called looking for the President. Tigh called looking for the Commander. They were sent away with the lame excuse of a marathon strategy session. On the second day, Admiral Cain called looking for both of them.


	4. Chapter 4

Admiral Cain's XO told Billy the Admiral would be coming for an office call rather than asking him if the President would see her. To get around the protocol, the XO said President Roslin asked to see Admiral Cain. While true, it skirted the fact that the President asked to see her several times but she only responded when it suited her own agenda.

LT Gaeta woke Commander Adama with the message that Admiral Cain wanted him to come to a meeting with the President (who, unbeknown to Gaeta, was sleeping next to him) in an hour.

"About what?"

"The prisoners, Sir."

"Thank you, Mr. Gaeta. Tell ops to get a shuttle ready."

"Aye, Sir."

Commander Adama turned to wake the President but lingered for a moment to look at her. She was so beautiful with her dark hair in waves on the pillow and the most serene expression on her face. Pain shot through his chest when he thought how little time he had left with her. He resolved then and there to take desperate measures. He considered them unthinkable until now. Slim as the chance of success was, he could think of no other way to save her.

"Laura," he whispered into her ear to wake her. She did not respond. He kissed her on the cheek. "Time to get up."

"Mmmm?"

Adama smiled at her drowsiness. "Admiral Cain has finally come around. We're scheduled to see her in an hour."

Laura Roslin rolled toward him and stretched under his gaze as she reluctantly opened her eyes. "Does she know I spent the last couple of days corrupting one of her officers?"

"No, and I don't think we should bring that up either."

"OK, but she doesn't strike me as someone who's easily shocked."

"She _is _easily angered, though. Besides," he offered to change the subject, "she wants to talk about the prisoners."

The President kissed him and sat up. "Well, I don't have much to say about that," she remarked as she wrapped herself in his robe and walked over to the head. "They are all strictly subject to the military justice system."

"Do you want me to go alone?" he asked as he got out of bed and poured some water into glasses.

"No, I'll go. Maybe we can tackle the supply issue when we're done with the prisoner issue," she said as she reappeared in the doorway. She crossed her arms and leaned on the frame. "Are you coming in?"

"I'll wash your back if you wash mine," Adama joked as he followed her into the shower.

To everyone's surprise, the prisoners Admiral Cain wanted to discuss weren't the ones subject to court martial. She intended to kill both of the Cylon prisoners since they weren't yielding any intel and were increasingly troublesome. This meeting served only to verify that they didn't think they could get any more out of the prisoner on Galactica before she disposed of it.

"I still want to do some medical research on it," Adama said firmly, careful to match the Admiral's pronoun, dehumanizing the Cylon. "We're short on medical support and long on injuries, so I need all the resources I can get."

President Roslin considered this reasonable but actually sided with the Admiral in wanting them gone as soon as they weren't of value.

"Alright, but wrap up whatever you want to do in two weeks. I've got some offensive plans in the works and I want any potential internal threats neutralized before we launch operations. Madame President, I'm glad we see eye to eye on this," she remarked with a tinge of surprise that they agreed on something.

Adama had to escort the Admiral back to her shuttle. Then he went directly to find the doctor.

"If I hadn't worked on you myself, I'd wonder if those bullets hadn't hit you in the brain instead of the chest. Do you know how miniscule the chances of this working are?"

"Can you give me a better alternative?"

After rubbing his chin and taking a drag on his cigarette, the doctor admitted he didn't have any other hope to offer. So once again, he'd be in on an impossible medical mission, breaking new ground that no one would ever know about. He was too old to be working on the anatomically mysterious. More than ever, he regretted not staying with that dancer on Gemini instead of accepting the retirement cruise on Galactica.


End file.
